Mexican Riviera Cruise

Mexican Riviera Cruise March 2007

Princess Cruises aboard the 5 star Diamond

So I am going to do a little backtracking since I have been meaning to do this blog for oh....a few months now. I'm taking Lainie's advice and my first post will be a log of out awesome cruise that we went on in March to Mexico.The Adams had yet another adventure. This time aboard a cruise ship for the first time!



We started our vacation with a couples massage night at the Claremont Hotel in Berkeley. Worth every penny!! The spa is amazing!!! It was a great start after Chris had taken 11 finals in 1 day!! Then we flew out that morning. Here is the log....

Day 1: We were both tired and a little sick from our massages. We checked in, explored the ship, got some ice cream, did our muster station drill, rested, and went to the night's shows. A dance show and a comedian. It was great!!

We visited this place at least once a day! Now how did I gain those 5 lbs?

Day 2: I got more sick thinking it was from the massage but ended up going to the doctor onboard to discover that I had Strep. I was so mad!! I'm so vulnerable to that. So I got some antibiotics and didn't get too sick. I recovered quickly just in time for our formal night. Whilst I was resting (every crew member loved this word! None of them were American. LOTS of accents. I loved it!)...Chris got another massage and watched March Madness. What a night!! We ate at the steakhouse and went to more entertainment. A comedian and amazing juggler!! Plus some dancing.

One of the pool decks where all the happenings were going on. They have 3 of these! This is the indoors one. It was funny to see the pool move with the ship. Each pool had small waves.

The Captain's Party in the ship's atrium. Music, dancing, and champagne (don't worry mom I didn't partake).


The ship's atrium. It was huge with 4 glass elevators!! Are we sure this is a ship?

Day 3: We took our first ballroom dance lessons then on to line dance lessons then a wild and crazy game of jeopardy. Then off to more shows this time an AMAZING magician!! We sat in the front row and tried to figure it all out but couldn't. While we were waiting we met an LDS couple (there were tons of LDS people on the cruise) and played rummy.


That's me in the white shirt. A little Boot Scoot Boogie. I actually knew how to do it this time!


We wanted to see the magician up close so we got there 1/2 an hour early. We had to pass the time with cards and a few Shirley Temples (our cocktail of choice for the cruise).


Chilling out on the promenade deck just listening to the waves crash against the ship. Look how relaxed Chris looks! Definitely a change from finals week a few days earlier.

Day 4: We docked in Puerto Vallarta did some shopping, met the locals and a donkey, and then sped off on a speedboat to the jungle. The ride was about 30 minutes and we went through all of these cool caves and did some birdwatching. It was amazing how big the pelicans were!! We got off the boat and got on this crazy bus to the top of the Sierra Madre Mountains where we met our tour. This was a high adventure activity and we sadly were not able to bring our camera so we had to buy those crazy expensive photos at the end. We first rode Mules to the peak of the mountains. I got a white one that was CRAZY and kept running when I told it to go. I almost fell off. It was so scary!! We were on these narrow switchback paths. The guide had to ride next to me to tame the mule and his mule licked and chewed at my ankle the whole time......yikes!!! Chris' mule was the flatulant one. So we got to the top, got on all of our equipment, and ride 7 ziplines. Then we repelled down two waterfalls and rode a few more ziplines one of which that dropped you into the water!! Its was SO COLD! We got soaked. Then we hiked through the jungle back to camp for snack and juice and then the busride and speedboat ride back to the ship. Our guides were so fun! The speedboat driver was crazy!!! I thought we were going to flip!! We had a few minutes left to shop a little more and do some emails before getting back on the ship. We had dinner and Chris was really sunburned. That night there was the ultimate party on board. There was dancing, streamers flying, all kinds of games and competitions, and these AMAZING ice sculptures with this crazy buffet. Pictures will follow. Chris was really tired out from the day so he slept the whole time but I was up there dancing. Plus the party started at 10:30 so it was late. I got to take home a bread turtle!! Sadly we left him behind. What do you do with a bread turtle?


These guys were just standing there outside the ship when we got off and posing for pictures. They were really fun and trying to scare people.

So I was just mentioning to the guy that his donkey was cute and he told me to sit down. Then he puts the donkey on my lap!!! I was shocked at first but the baby donkey was SO SOFT! I think he may have been sedated.


Cruising high above the jungle canopy. Brake!!!!

Chris was super cool. We had such a good time!!

Us on the ropes course they had as well. This is the monkey bridge. What you don't see is that it is over 100 feet up and one of the guides is shaking the bridge to scare us. It worked on me!! Good thing we had lots of safety equipment!

Repelling down the waterfall. I went first (that's me at the bottom about to get wet).

I felt like a true outdoorsmen! Me at the top of the waterfall.

The huge deck party! We did the conga, electric slide, funky chicken, and many many more to a live band that rocked!

The buffet at 10:30? That's the cruise life for you! Again...how did I gain all that weight? We got to watch the people make the sculptures with tools and a chainsaw in 5 minutes!! Wish I could do that. I do need a hobby.....

I could do that right?

Day 5: Mazatlan! We took an open air taxi to the Golden Zone where we did lots of shopping! This was the place we were told to get all of our souvenirs and so on because Mazatlan is the cheapest. I bought a bunch of Mexican vanilla, my secret ingredient. It smells SO GOOD!! The beach there was amazing and we took a few dips between shopping. We didn't do too much damage. Chris is a good haggler. After shopping and the beach we got another taxi to go hike the lighthouse. Chris' spanish came in handy because he befriended our cabby Oscar instantly and he told us all the secrets of the place. He took us to a Coco Frios stand which is a place that sells cold coconuts. You drink the water inside with a straw and then they cut it open and take out the meat and you season it with salt, limes, and chile pepper. It was so yummy!! We bought our cabby one too. He had a friend that was diving for octupus and he let Chris hold a bunch of them! He also stopped for us to take pictures of a HUGE iguana (he moved away too fast to get a picture) and took us to the Pacific school (sound familiar) for Chris to take pictures with his Pacific hat on. The school is prek through 4th year of college and is one of the oldest schools in Mexico. We ended our ride at the lighthouse. We had to hike up stairs and switchbacks for a good 40 minutes to get to the top. It was hot and tough but the view was amazing at the top!! This lighthouse is the second tallest in Mexico. We got some waters and took pictures of the views with all kinds of birds overhead like Condors. Then we hiked down and walked about a mile back to the ship stopping to see some arts and crafts shows and listen to some music. That night we hit the buffet and went to this AMAZING show with a performer that sang and danced and got the crowd involved. We sat on the front row and guess who got chosen to sing for everyone...CHRIS!!!!! The guy made him sing "My Girl" with him and dance and make sexy faces and tiger noises. It was so funny!!!!!! I was crying....Chris was terrified but he really played it up. After the show everyone was like Chris.....can I get your autograph??!! OR Hey that's the guy from the show. I felt famous. That night we also got up close and personal with the magician at a small magic show with his slight of hand. Chris got chosen again to do some tricks !! I guess it didn't help that he was wearing a bright green polo. The magician was amazing and we were sitting really close at this big table and still couldn't figure out his tricks. Then we went off to a hypnotist show. I got chosen and went up there. I only made it through to the first stages because I guess my mind is too strong willed. But I was on stage for the first round until this guy fell asleep in my lap and then I woke up and was done. Then there was more dancing in club fusion. What a crazy time!!

The view from the lighthouse. Ha ha....our cruise ship is the biggest!

Chris is holding 8 octupus!! His fingers are in their mouths. Hmm....do octupus need a dentist?

Mmmmm....Cocos Frios

The beach. What a pretty place. I bought a handmade sarong here from an old Mexican women. At least that is what she said....

Day 6: Cabo! It was a little windy and cold when we first got off the ship but it warmed up quickly. We did some shopping in the morning. It was more expensive in Cabo so we didn't buy much. Then we were off to our next shore excursion. We boarded speedboats to a beach and were instructed on Kayak operation. We took pictures the whole time (on a water camera) and paddled out to Los Arcos and Lover's Beach. What a picturesque place!!! I couldn't believe it! Kayaking was a blast and then we went to lover's beach to relax takes pictures and snorkel. We snorkeled first with some frozen peas and saw tons of fish. We took pictures with an underwater camera. The snorkeling was really deep though. I was a little nervous myself and the water was a little rough. We ran out of pictures so we couldn't get the most picturesque shot with Los Arcos (at Land's End where the Pacific meets the Gulf) and the ship right between the rocks and the sandy beach. We didn't bring our digital camera because we thought it would get wet. So we asked some friends of ours that we made on board to take a picture and we hope we get it!!! (We haven't yet) After that we kayaked back and got back on the ship. It was our second formal night and we went to another show, another comedian, and did the Newlyweds game. We signed up but weren't chosen because there was a couple that was only married 6 days. That were LDS too! But they were really embarassing and clueless. Plus one of the questions was if you could have another wife who would you marry....all the other couples chose celebrities and he chose her best friend. His rationale was that they had to get along. Boy did they have fun with that with them being from Utah and polygamy and all.......grrrr....I think he may have slept on the couch tha tnight. After that it was more ballroom dancing. We knew how to do it this time, the survivor challenge finale, and princess popstar auditions. I didn't join this time. We were too busy doing all the other stuff on board.

Is that twin lobster tail?? And you can order more that one? And multiple desserts? Oh boy!!

This was the pizza place on the top deck. We ate here multiple times. I would get pizza and Chris got a burger and fries at the place next to it. And it's all included?

The last Day: We were tired!!! We slept in late and then tried to do it all. There was a big fiesta and party on deck for lunch then some lounging at the pool and the spa (we bought a weekly pass and were there at least once a day too). We caught a fitness seminar and Chris finished his third golf lesson onboard (there was so much to do I forgot to mention it all). Then we went to another show with another comedian and magician then to the Princess Popstar finals and more dancing. Oh...what a trip. Then we crashed early (2am) so we could wake up early and pack.

We spent a lot of time in the spa. They had these great waterfall showers with 8 showerheads, saunas, steam rooms, and these FABULOUS warm stone beds. We would come read, drink cucumber water, and chat with fellow cruisers. Also, they had a great fitness center. Running on a ship that is constantly moving was HARD.

This was my attempt at a Titanic shot. The Logistics didn't quite work so this was what we got.

Look at how smooth the water is!! The sunsets were always breathtaking!

And the cruise is over. Well at least the daylight part. We partied late into the night!

Last morning: Packed, ate, got off the ship. No more room service. No more midnight buffets or constant entertainment. What were we to do with ourselves? Customs gave Chris a hard time because they thought that I was trying to smuggle a Mexican accross the border. It was funny. He asked if I was his wife and for how long. For the last time...Chris isn't Mexican....LOL. He's American Indian!! We get it all the time. Good thing he speaks fluent spanish from his mission. That doesn't help. LOL Anyways...here we are....I didn't even mention the amazing food!! Twin lobster tail, filet mignon, just to name a few....oh man...plus the weight we gained. I'm afraid to get on the scale. We had a blast!